Eugene Magee provided yet another blockbuster finish as Banbridge ended the fifth weekend of the EY Hockey League with a four-point lead over their rivals.
He fired home his second buzzer-beating drag-flick of the campaign – the other coming against Three Rock Rovers on day one – for their fifth win out of six games so far this season, beating Monkstown 3-2.
They had trailed 2-1 at half-time to goals from Gareth Watkins and Andrew Ward but a fine second half saw them draw level at 2-2 through Zach McClelland before Magee’s last-ditch winner.
Reigning league champions Glenanne moved into second spot with a 1-0 win over Three Rock Rovers with Shannon Boucher’s seventh-minute goal the only difference.
It keeps them unbeaten from five games. With a game in hand on Banbridge, they could close the gap to one point; Rovers drop back to third spot.
Pembroke, meanwhile, got back to winning ways as they held off a Cork C of I comeback to prevail 3-2. Keith O’Hare got a hat-trick for the Dublin 4 club for a handsome lead only to concede two set-piece goals in the last ten minutes.
It moves them into a share of third place with Three Rock and Lisnagarvey on nine points. Garvey won their third game when they got the better of YMCA in a 3-2 result.
It was tight with Troy Chambers and Sam Hyland sharing the goals in the first half at 1-1 before Daniel Nelson put Lisnagarvey 3-1 up with a classy double. Grant Glutz got one back for the Y but they remain bottom of the table.
Annadale won a 4-3 thriller at Strathearn against Ulster rivals Cookstown. They trailed 1-0 and 2-1 but Peter Caruth was a constant thorn in the side, scoring twice and setting up one. When Cookstown got back to 3-3 late in the game, Caruth was coolly in position to flick home from mid-circle amid a melee.
The season takes a break for a week until 3 November.
EY Hockey League results: Annadale 4 (P Caruth 2, D Tremlett, R Burgess) Cookstown 3 (T Sloan, R Millar, M Kerr); Glenanne 1 (S Boucher) Three Rock Rovers 0; Pembroke 3 (K O’Hare 3) Cork C of I 2 (J Jermyn, K O’Dea); YMCA 2 (G Glutz, S Hyland) Lisnagarvey 3 (D Nelson 2, T Chambers); Banbridge 3 (E Magee 2, Z McClelland) Monkstown 2 (G Watkins, A Ward)
